A Journeyman's Promise
by R. Steiner
Summary: After a tragic event causing the death of his parents, Aatto Aatonen vows to honor their memory in the most challenging way possible: to beat the Alolan League circuit. Despite popular belief, the circuit is dangerous and grueling. What will become of Aatto on his journey of self-realization? Rated M(MA) for Violence, Sexual Themes/Smut, Swearing, and other Adult content.
1. Chapter 1

**_The Owl, the Lizard, the Forest, the Tank, the Insect, and the Rooster_**

 ** _Or_**

 ** _A Journeyman's Promise_**

 _Prologue_

 ** _She_** tapped the blank book with the quill made from one of her own feathers irritably. It had been several days and still her mind was a blank.

" _Fucking writer's block_ …" She growled, as she hastily set the quill down, and rubbed her head. Her ability to write had been growing worse throughout the week, mainly due to procrastination, stress, or, well, _sexual_ tension. She only had one love in her life, and the large amount of men looking at her the past month when she actually stepped outside to think was just pissing her off.

" _If only I was not so damn lazy sometimes_ …"

The sound of the door to her room opening startled her, although she really should have sensed him coming well before he got to the door.

"Metsä, you alright? You've been in our room for the past week, and haven't come out, like, at _all_. You must be starving!"

The sides of Metsࣦä's beak rose upwards, into the closest she could get to a smile.

"I'm sorry Aatto, It's been just, rough, writing this damn book. I was trying to get an idea, but I just can't seem to pull one outta my head. Also, I am kind of hungry, _for a certain someone_." She added with a wink.

Aatto chuckled. "Only if you eat something first. Besides, you probably haven't gotten any ideas due to the fact that you've been up here this entire time. I've missed you a lot. So hurry up bird-brain."

"Alright," Metsä sighed, with a slight chuckle, "Just give me a minute."

After Aatto closed the door, Metsä sighed, and tabbed the blank page she had stared at for all too long, and flipped the book all the way to the first page.

"Yeah, my dear's right. Sitting in our room and not going out to get some air and relief has most likely taken a toll on my mental process. Liekki's going to kill me for staying up here for so long. Alright, food, a walk, some _relaxation_ with my husband, and a good long nap: that's what I'm going to do. _Then_ I'll finally get back to you." Metsä gave an annoyed stare at the book, in order to emphasize her last point to no one in particular.

"Heh, maybe someone will magically come in and review this damn thing for me. Wouldn't that be a surprise?"

Metsä stood, stretched her back, and began to head for the door. After reaching it, she swung it open and yelled: "Coming down love! Dinner smells lovely, even from up here!"

"Unlike when _YOU_ cook!" He jokingly yelled back.

Pausing for a second, she chuckled to herself softly.

"What did I ever do to deserve someone as great and loving as him?"

Chapter One

It all started with two young lovers, a soldier, and a volcanologist, and also some broken latex. No one knew where Aatto Emil Aatonen was born, as the region he was born in was unrecognized by the Global Pokémon League, and was therefore written down as 'the Farlands' on his birth certificate. No one even knew what the real names of Aatto's parents were, as they had changed them after they settled down in an old traditional home in Iki Town, on Melemele Island, in the Alola region. They were just known as "Mrs. Aaltonen" and "Mr. Aaltonen" by the locals, although they were known as "Pat" or "Mat" by co-workers, and friends of the family.

Despite Aatto being an accident, he was unconditionally loved by his parents, which was why they moved to Alola in the first place, as it was a place for 'new beginnings'. Mr. Aaltonen quickly found a job as a, well, volcanologist for the Aether Foundation of Research and Preservation (a newly reworked Aether Foundation built from the ground-up ten years after the Ultra Beast fiasco). Mrs. Aaltonen found a job as a marine for the Alolan Defense Army, often being assigned as a guard for Mr. Aaltonen's group as they periodically visited Wela Volcano on Akala Island. Unfortunately, on one of these research trips, a wild Pokémon was disturbed, and accidentally caused the volcano to erupt. No one from the research team survived.

As to be expected, Aatto did not take the news of his parents' deaths lightly. He ran from his home at the age of twelve, and did not return until he was sixteen. At that point he had tried to get into a relationship, but had to drop out of it due to both stress, and multiple failures at finding a job. It took Aatto two years to finally realize what he could do, to both support him financially, and get over the fatalities of his parents: He would compete in the Alolan Pokémon League circuit, one of the most difficult challenges a person could ever hope to achieve.

Of course, he was not alone. He had two partners, Metsä, a female Rowlet given to him by his mother, and Liekki, a female Salandit given to him by his father. The two complemented Aatto rather oddly. He was rowdy, and full of energy. Metsä was cautious and rather shy (except around Aatto and Liekki). Finally, Liekki was lazy, and rather stubborn (of course, except around Aatto and Metsä, where she was simply lazy). During his time spent away from home, Aatto got a grasp of battling, by practicing against smaller Pokémon in the wild. It was this experience that finally pushed him to settling on becoming a Trainer, aside from, of course, wanting money and to honor his parents.

The alarm clock on the nightstand suddenly shrieked, signifying that morning had finally arrived. It was quickly knocked aside by a rather tired Aatto Aaltonen, whom grumbled, and he slowly sat up. With a yawn and a stretch, Aatto was up for the day. He threw his covers off, revealing that he slept in his clothes, which was one of his mother's old BDU's (she was a very, very buff woman). It was an old oak-leaf camouflaged set, and Aatto's personal favorite set of clothing, since the material it was made out of prevented it from getting dirty, or smelly.

Aatto trudged into his bathroom, turning on the sink and collecting water in his hands. He splashed his face with the water, and shook his head. He looked himself in the mirror. His brown eyes matched the color of his hair, which was long and unkempt. Aatto noticed that his beard was growing in rather quickly, and contemplated on shaving. He decided not to, as he was too proud of the damn thing to go without it. He quickly brushed his teeth, flossed, and gargled, before putting all of his toiletries away into his small toiletry case.

With his case in hand, Aatto walked over to the door. On a hook in the middle of the door was his mother's old rucksack, and field cap. Aatto stuffed his toiletry case inside the bag, and quickly removed it from the hook, slinging it over his shoulder in the process. He finished by pulling the cap off of the hook, and firmly setting it on his head.

"Metsä! Liekki! Let's go, today's the day!"

After opening his door, Aatto was greeted by the adorable face of a Dartrix, eagerly waiting for him on the other side, while anxiously moving back and forth on her perch. Metsä flew off of her perch and onto her other perch, which was Aatto's right shoulder.

"Good morning Metsä, can't wait to get out of this bloody house too, huh?"

Metsä replied with a happy "Coo!" Aatto smiled, and ruffled the feathers on top of Metsä's head. While he rubbed her head, Aatto felt something crawl up his back, up his neck, and underneath his hat. Liekki's head lazily drooped out from under the brim of Aatto's field cap, and her tail also lazily hanging from the back of Aatto's cap.

"What, no: 'Good morning Aatto,' Liekki?" Aatto joked, earning him a huff as a reply from Leikki. Aatto shook his head with a chuckle.

"Well, good to see that you're around Leikki. Now let's finally get outta here."

Aatto threw open the front door to his home, and shut it, locking it behind him. He turned to face Iki Town in all of its glory. When he first moved to Iki Town, it was a rather small, peaceful town. Seventeen years later, it would soon grow to the size of almost a small city, having all the luxuries of one too. There were shops, businesses, and apartments everywhere. The only thing that did not change, however, was the old Kahuna's arena, from back when Alola used the 'Island Challenge' for its circuit. Today, it was simply used as an arena for qualification matches, for potential trainers to register and qualify for their Trainer's License and PokéDex. Aatto luckily registered beforehand, on a library computer, and had also scheduled his match beforehand, allowing him to skip the usually long lines there.

Thankfully, he lived rather close to the arena, being a simple five minute walk. As he walked to the arena, he could see people staring at him, either because he had his Pokémon out and resting on his head and shoulder, or because they knew about him through the tragic accident that caused him so much grief beforehand. The ones that knew him from the latter, which was not much, nodded their heads respectfully when they passed.

As Aatto walked up to the arena, he could see the line for entry spanning out of the entrance building doors. With a smile, he simply walked past the trainers in line, which certainly pissed a few people off.

"Hey, no cutting in line! I've been waiting hours to get in!" A twelve year-old shouted, as Aatto walked past him. Aatto simply smiled and replied: "Should've pre-registered then."

Aatto nearly laughed when he heard the kid mutter: "Dammit, you could do that? Aww I'm a friggin _idiot_."

The entrance building was not impressive on the inside. It was a simple room with a counter, a small waiting area (which was packed to the brim with trainers), and a pair of large double-doors, which was the obvious entrance to the arena. Aatto walked up to the receptionist counter, and pulled out a small red card. The receptionist that was tasked with admitting wannabe trainers whom actually pre-registered for their license and match slot was busy looking at her phone, while chewing gum. Aatto cleared his throat, grabbing her attention.

"Oh! Sorry, have you pre-registered for your license and match today sir?" She asked, with Aatto sliding the red card to her.

"Yes, I did, here's the card."

"Thank Arceus, someone actually _pre-registered_." The receptionist muttered, and quickly punched the card into a reading machine.

"Looks like you showed up just in time, your match is actually next. Good luck."

"Thanks." Aatto replied. He walked over next to the double doors, and waited. It was not long before a girl, with tears streaming down her face, burst out of the double doors, crying while holding a fainted Yungoos.

 _She most likely lost due to her starter being so weak, or possibly because she was not experienced enough, or maybe it was both. The qualifier match isn't that hard, hopefully_. Aatto thought, as he walked through the double doors, and into the arena.

The arena itself was not too fantastic, it was old and wooden, but the decorations around the arena were actually pleasant to look at. Aatto took a breath, and exhaled, quietly hyping himself up. He could see his opponent on the other side of the arena. He was rather short, and wore red, baggy pants and a white t-shirt with the official Pokémon League symbol on it.

He bowed, and introduced himself: "Ah, hello! You must be Aatto. I've heard what happened to your parent's, my condolences. My name's Jakob by the way, with a 'k', not a 'c'."

"It's a pleasure, Jakob. I don't plan on losing today, so I hope you're ready."

Jakob gave a hearty laugh. "I like your attitude Aatto! Certainly better than most of the kids I face. Anyway, it's a standard matchup; I will test you and your Pokémon's abilities in combat. I reserve the right to force you to switch at any point of time, and you are allowed to switch out in the middle of a fight two times, unless directed to otherwise. You have to defeat one of my Pokémon in order to win. Winning this match will grant you your Trainer's License, your PokéDex, and, if I feel generous enough, some PD. So, you ready?"

"I am, are you?"

With a smile, Jakob pulled out a Pokéball from his belt and threw it up into the air. A rather large looking dog, with stones across its neck materialized, growling at the sight of Aatto and his partners.

"Alright, Metsä, let's do this! Fly up into the air, get some distance!"

"Run and jump after it! Don't let that Dartrix get airborne!"

Jakob's Rockruff darted towards Metsä, narrowly biting her on one of her legs as she boosted herself up into the air. She began to dodge the Rockruff's attempts at grabbing her, and, with each time the Rockruff leaped up after her, she'd pelt its side with a few quills. This forced Jakob to quickly rethink his strategy.

"Stop jumping after it, and throw some rocks at it! Knock it from outta the sky!"

"Keep dodging Metsä! Dive at it when it's not attacking you!"

Several stones of various sizes flew past Metsä as she began to dive down at the Rockruff. A stone managed to smash itself against one of her wings, causing her to screech in pain, and drop to the ground. Metsä was not out of the fight however, as she quickly regained her footing, and began to throw quills at the Rockruff, which managed to pierce its skin, and lodge their selves in its hide. Jakob soon called out to Aatto.

"Hey Aatto, switch out your Dartrix, give it some rest. I wanna see what your other partner can do!"

"You heard him Metsä, switch out, and Liekki, please take this seriously."

Liekki gave Aatto a semi-serious dirty look, acting as if she was offended by his comment. She crawled her way out from under his hat and hopped down to the ground, patiently sitting.

"Continue to throw rocks, Rockruff!"

"Liekki, whip up a cloud of poison and pheromones!"

Liekki took a breath in, and soon exhaled a large amount of poisonous mist, getting pelted by rocks in the process, however the Rockruff was too focused on damaging Liekki, that it forgot to move away from the mist.

"Liekki, finish it!"

Liekki took in another breath, and breathed a small burst of fire directed at the Rockruff. It made contact, damaging the Rockruff just enough to incapacitate it. It fell over, tired from the battle, and the effects of the poison.

"Well, shouldn't say I'm surprised," Jakob chuckled, "Kinda figured that you'd have it in you. Congratulations Aatto Aatonen, you just won your qualification match for the Alolan Pokémon League! Your PokéDex and Trainer's License should be ready and waiting for you when you walk outta here, and also, here's a gift from me, for actually being the first one to beat me today, and putting up a good fight while you were at it."

Jakob handed Aatto 15,000 PD, which was an especially hefty sum of cash for a rather low-ranking battle.

"Thanks, Jakob, I had a blast fighting you, really took whatever tension I was feeling before outta my system."

Jakob smiled. "Don't mention it; hope I can see you again sometime. Maybe have another battle in the future?"

"We'll see!" Aatto chuckled, as he made his way out of the arena.

 **Sorry if the first chapter seems a little light. Since this is the first story I'm uploading (In a long time), I'm kind of experimenting with how long I should make the chapters. I'd appreciate it if you, the reader, would let me know what your opinion is. I've also been reading** ** _Flame of Life_** **by Krimson Kane recently (Really great read by the way), so I kind of was inspired to write that little 'prologue' in the beginning, to set this up as sort of a 'book' made by one of the characters. I'll try to update regularly. Be sure to let me know how I'm doing.**

 **-Steiner**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Aatto inspected his Trainer's License carefully, holding it up to the light, flipping it over, turning it upside down, and repeating the process multiple times. He could not actually believe that he finally was a registered Trainer in the Pokémon League. It was as if a path long blocked off suddenly opened up in front of him, beckoning him to follow it.

He quickly switched from examining his license, to examining his Dex. It was the classic red color, and rather light for its size. Apparently, it featured almost everything one could imagine in any personal device possible. It featured a built-in cellphone, internet access, radio and TV station access, and even some game applications. It was the premier mobile device, and was only exclusive to trainers, Pokémon professors, and Rangers.

Aatto booted up the PokéDex. It flashed a Pokéball symbol as it initialized, and soon, showed its home screen. Taking a moment, Aatto tapped the "Profile" icon on the screen. Immediately, a digital version of Aatto's Trainer's License popped up on screen, with every bit of information pre-filled out. It even showed Liekki and Metsä registered on his team already.

Deciding that he spent enough time ogling his new Dex, Aatto stretched his back, with a slight smile on his face.

"Well, Metsä, Liekki, it's _finally_ about time we get out there and do something."

Aatto opened up the 'Region Map' application on his PokéDex, and zoomed in on Iki Town. He took careful note of the local shops and businesses around town. Many trainers had perished by not packing enough supplies for their journey, and Aatto was not about to become one of them.

Aatto began walking down Iki Town's main street, only stopping when he came across the first destination on his list: An Alolan Army surplus store. Usually military surplus was _extremely_ cheap, and were also very, very reliable. It surprised Aatto that nobody really paid attention to surplus stores, as they provided a journey's essentials at a fair price.

Aatto as greeted with the sound of a bell chiming when he walked into the surplus store. An older man was leaning over the checkout counter in the back, presumably the owner of the shop.

"Finally, a customer. Let me know if there's anything I can help you with lad."

Aatto nodded, before aimlessly walking around the many tables and shelves stocked with old military surplus. Immediately he picked up an old flashlight, with a rather large lens and bulb. After walking further down the aisle he was in, Aatto immediately grabbed the first entrenchment tool he saw. Entrenchment tools were a blessing to have, as they had many different features, allowing them to be used for multiple tasks and situations.

After roughly thirty minutes of browsing, Aatto finally walked up to the checkout counter. In his arms, he held the flashlight and entrenchment tool he previously picked up, as well as a tent, a camouflaged parka, a portable stove, a pair of binoculars, and a long bayonet, which doubled as a combat knife. Aatto set the goods down on the counter, and the old man began to count the prices of each item.

"It's good to see a payin' customer for once. You just saved me from shutting this place down for good." He muttered.

"I'm surprised that nobody has actually decided to buy from you. This stuff is very important on the road."

"Aye, that it is. Alright, since I'm feeling generous, I'll sell this stuff to you at half-price. It'll be 5,000 PD."

Aatto forked over fifty 100 bills to the old man, who took the bills, and stuffed them in a pocket.

"Thanks again for giving me business lad."

Aatto waved goodbye to the storeowner as he left, stuffing his new tools inside of his rucksack as he went along. The next destination on his list was the local PokéMart, which sold food, Trainer gear, and medical supplies, as well as standard everyday goods. Conveniently, it was located right at the western-most exit into Route 1, which was only a short jog to Hau'oli City.

As Aatto walked along, he looked around, noting a decrease in the amount of pedestrians, compared to a few hours earlier. He shrugged it off, finding it not too odd in the slightest.

After a good ten to fifteen minute walk, he finally arrived at Iki Town's local PokéMart. As soon as Aatto stepped through the sliding glass doors, he saw a commotion unfold in the middle of the building.

"Y… you can't just take him, he's my partner!"

"Too bad, kid, he's ours now, and he's gonna make us a pretty good amount of cash."

A kid, around fifteen to sixteen-ish, was being harassed by two thugs in what appeared to be track suits. One of them, whom was rather tall, was holding what appeared to be a round, black ball, with pink spikes growing from its back. It was a Pyukumuku. It appeared to be totally oblivious to the situation, giving a confused "Pyuk?"

Seeing as nobody around was too keen on interfering with the confrontation, Aatto gave a sigh, and rolled up his sleeves.

"Guess I gotta step in. Liekki, Metsä, get off of me for a moment, this should not take too long."

The two silently nodded, and fluttered or hopped off of Aatto, who proceeded to step up to the two track suit thugs.

"Hey!"

The shorter thug turned to face Aatto, giving him a grin as he eyed him down.

"So, some random punk decides to play hero, huh? You must be stupid to try us, or do you just want to get a sick beating?"

The second thug faced his 'friend'. "Yo, man, I don't like the look of this bloke. Let's just give the kid his stupid Pokémon back and book it."

The first thug put his hands to his hips, and gave his partner a dirty look.

"You think that we'll get into Skull behaving like that you numbskull? I can take this dude; I ain't no hollow-boned fool!"

The first thug charged Aatto. He quickly sidestepped, causing the thug to crash into the wall. The thug quickly turned, swinging his fist at Aatto, who took the blow. Aatto waited for the thug to swing again, and when he did, he grabbed his arm, and flung the thug to the side. The thug charged again, this time getting a knee to the gut. Aatto grabbed one of the thug's arms and pinned it, applying pressure to his elbow. Using his free arm, Aatto pushed down on the thug, bringing him to the ground.

"AY YO, ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT I QUIT I QUIT! DUDE!"

Aatto released the hold, and the thug grabbed his arm, holding it in pain. He looked up at his companion. "DUDE, GIVE THE KID HIS 'MON BACK!"

The second thug threw the Pyukumuku back at the kid, and booked it out of the PokéMart. The first thug stood and looked at Aatto for a second.

"Yo, don't think this is over, I'll be ready for you next time, numbskull!"

With that, the thug ran out of the PokéMart, attempting to catch up with his friend. Leikki and Metsä hopped back onto Aatto. As Aatto walked over to the kid, he recalled his Pyukumuku back into its ball. "Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yeah, thanks for getting Pyuky back for me. I don't know if I was gonna get him back!"

"No problem. Just be sure to be around a more helpful crowd." Aatto sneered at the bystanders, who did nothing to help the kid. A lot of them looked down in regret.

"Like you?"

Aatto frowned, and pondered his choices. He barely knew the kid, and didn't know how having another person to look over would affect his travels. However, it was always safer to travel in a group, especially for the kid.

"If you want to come along with me, then fine. You have to get your own supplies though. I'll share some of my tools with you, until you get your own. You know how to survive in the wild?"

"I do. I was a Ranger Scout, and my dad was a Ranger. I helped him during work sometimes, so I have enough stuff and knowledge. I just don't have the bravery you do…"

Aatto smiled, and put a hand on the kid's shoulder. "You'll become braver with time. Anyway, what's your name?"

"It's Chad, Chad Emmerson."

"Aatto Aaltonen, nice to meet you."

Chad held out his hand, and Aatto shook it, with a smile. "I gotta get some stuff from the 'Mart first, got any ideas what I should get?"

"The back isle has a whole bunch of potions, antidotes and whatnot. The front desk sells Pokéballs. The middle isles sell canned and dried food and repels. You should also consider getting a bow, or a gun."

Aatto raised a brow. "A bow or gun?"

"Sometimes you gotta hunt for your own food. Have you ever shot a bow or gun before?"

"I shot a gun before, my… mother, was a soldier. She taught me how to fire a pistol and rifle, as well as cleaning and general care. I thought guns were illegal for civilians though?"

"They changed the law years ago. Ever since the Ultra Beast situation, Pokémon have been growing more riled up, and therefore more dangerous. Trainers can carry a firearm if they are at least 18 years old, and have had proper firearms training. It should say if you are able to on your digital license."

Aatto pulled out his PokéDex, and tapped on the profile icon. His digital Trainer's License flashed on the screen. On the lower right corner, under his picture, was a circle with an icon of a pistol in its center. It had a check mark on its right.

"Guess I'm able to get one then. I really don't know if I necessarily need it…"

"You should. There might be the possibility that your Pokémon won't be able to save you. What would happen then? You can't possibly fistfight any old Pokémon and win, can you?"

Aatto frowned, and rubbed his chin. "You're right… Alright, I'll deal with that after I get everything else I need."

With that, Aatto and Chad walked through the PokéMart, picking up anything that they needed. The PokéMart had advanced greatly over the years, aside from growing larger and larger. As soon as Aatto or Chad picked up something, the PokéMart would automatically charge for the item if they put it in Aatto's bag. It made shopping quicker and more efficient, as well as preventing theft.

After purchasing the necessary supplies, Aatto and Chad walked up to the counter, to purchase some Pokéballs. Aatto looked over every single one. There were dozens of varieties, each with their own unique purpose. A lot of them however, were not available to Aatto. Certain Pokéballs could only be purchased if the trainer buying them had enough badges. Aatto decided to purchase two twelve-packs of standard Pokéballs, while Chad bought only one.

"Alright, that should be enough. So… about this bow or gun business…" Aatto began.

"There's a small bazaar near the entrance that sells this stuff. I'll meet you outside."

Aatto nodded, and Chad made his way out of the mart. Aatto walked up to the bazaar, noting that the weapons in the cases were of various ages, some being modern and high-tech, and some being older, and more, vanilla. A tall man with a thick Kalosian accent greeted Aatto.

"Hello, my name is Louise, how may I assist you today?"

"I'm looking for a weapon to take along with me for protection, and possibly hunting."

Louise nodded, and motioned for Aatto to follow him.

"Do you want something more modern, or something classical?"

"Something older… like…" Aatto took a look around, before spotting a pistol that caught his eye.

"I'll take the Broomhandle there."

"Ah, good choice. It comes with a stock, spare barrel, and ten magazines. The ammo is sold separately, 1000 PD for one 250 count box. The pistol itself costs 50,000 PD."

"I'll take it, and ten boxes of ammo."

"That would be 60,000 PD."

Louise handed Aatto a card reader, and Aatto swiped his license across the screen. The transaction was completed, and the ammunition and pistol were handed over. The stock was placed in a rag, and the pistol was placed inside of its stock, which doubled as a holster. The ammunition boxes were placed into Aatto's rucksack.

"Thank you, and come back soon."

Aatto thanked Louise, and finally made his way out of the PokéMart. Chad was waiting for him, as said. "Finally decide on something?"

"Yeah, I just hope I don't have to really use it."

"Well, the rest of Route One is just a road to Hau'Oli. The first gym is in Hau'Oli, but we should train in Route Two before though. Leader Evans is not a pushover."

"That sounds like a right plan. Let's go."

The two began their walk over to Hau'Oli. The only major place on West Route One was the Pokémon Trainer's School. It was open to the public, and people could walk in at any time in order to learn. It, of course, also was a fully functioning school, and normal classes were in a separate part of the building.

"So, did you go to the Trainer's School, Aatto?"

"No. I was home-schooled."

"Also, where are you from? Your name and accent certainly are not from anywhere I know."

"I'm from the 'Farlands'. My parents and I moved to Alola when I was very young. Even I don't know where exactly I was born. All I really know is that it was an old city way up north, near the water."

"Oh, that kind of sucks. I hope you can find out where you were born sometime."

"Thanks."

"By the way, what are your parents like?"

Aatto was silent for a minute.

"Oh. Never mind then."

"No, it's fine. They were nice people. They died years ago. I try not to think about it too much. I also at least have Metsä and Liekki along with me."

Aatto smiled, as he looked up at Metsä, who cooed in response. Aatto gave her a scratch on her head in response. "They were gifts from my parents. I guess they kept me sane throughout the years, even if Liekki is a bit lazy sometimes."

Liekki gave Aatto a dirty look, making Chad laugh. "Well, it does seem like she likes you enough to not singe your hair off, huh?"

"She almost did one time. She actually has poisoned me so many times in the past that I've basically gained immunity to it!"

The two laughed, and continue to share stories and jokes until they reached Hau'Oli. By that time, night was slowly creeping into the sky. The Hau'Oli skyline was glowing with light. Aatto stared at the city, eyes open. He had never been to Hau'Oli, and the sight of all of the lights shocked him.

"I've never seen something so cool before. Man, I wish I got out more often."

"Well, don't stand there all day. We should get some rooms for the night. The PokéCenter should be right up ahead."

"Right, lead the way."

The two began to walk into Hau'Oli. The city was very busy, especially during the night. Pedestrians walked to and fro, either coming home from work, or going out to places to eat, or hang out with friends. It was a dramatic change from the night life of Iki Town. As Chad said, the PokéCenter was close to the entrance of the city. In fact, the city was so large that there were two, one near Route One, and one towards the north of the city, near Route Two.

"Hello there!" The two were greeted by a nurse standing behind a desk towards the back of the center. Chad and Aatto walked towards the nurse. She wore a nametag with "Alex Joy" written on it. Recently, PokéCenters have been lax on their uniform regulations. 'Nurse Joys' were able to have their hair any way they decided, however they were still required to put 'Joy' on their nametags, in place of their last names, as tradition states.

"We'd like to book rooms for the night, please." Aatto told the nurse.

"Alright, judging by the Pokémon with you, you must be a trainer. Please show me your license, and I'll give you your rooms."

"So, wait, I don't have to pay for rooms?"

The nurse chuckled. "Rooms are free for Trainers. Of course, non-trainers can use the rooms too; however it's free for Trainers, Leaders, Rangers, and emergency services."

"Ah, alright, here's my license." Aatto handed his license over to the nurse, as well as Chad. The Nurse Joy scanned their licenses, and handed them back.

"Alright, your rooms are Room 17 and Room 19. They should be easy to see, pretty close to the front." The Nurse Joy pointed towards the hall entrance next to the desk.

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Have a good night!"

Aatto and Chad made their way towards their rooms, which were, of course, close to the entrance of the hall. In fact, they were right across from each other.

"Well, see you tomorrow morning, and hey, thanks again for saving Pyuky for me."

"No problem, see you tomorrow morning too."

Aatto looked at the door to his room, noting that it had a card reader. He took out his license, and swiped it through the reader. It flashed green three times, before unlocking with an audible 'CLICK!' Inside, there was a lounge area, a kitchen area, a bathroom, and three bedrooms. All very large for what seemed like a tiny building.

Metsä and Liekki jumped off of Aatto, Liekki herself jumping right onto the sofa in the middle of the lounge. Metsä roosted on an armrest on the same sofa, looking at Aatto.

"Well, good night Metsä. Tomorrow we'll be training, so get some rest, yeah?"

Metsä gave Aatto a happy coo, making Aatto smile.

"Alright, see you in the morning too."

 **It took me a little bit to get this chapter finished, due to college and work. I'm still working on chapter length, so please, tell me how you feel about the size of the chapter and whatnot. Don't forget to tell me how I'm doing in general, if you want to. Cheers!**

 **-Steiner**


End file.
